Currently, in the horticultural industry, nurserymen employ injection molded and thermoformed plastic trays to transport multitudes of flower pots in a variety of sizes and shapes, e.g., large and small, round and square, etc. The trays and pots, for example, enable the nurseryman to perform the following functions: 1) fill pots with growing media, i.e., soil, usually on a moving belt; 2) transplant plugs or cuttings into the pots; 3) transport many such filled pots to growing areas (in the greenhouse, for example) and back again to a staging area for sorting and picking; 4) transplant the mature plants via truck (on racks or carts often) to the market place, e.g., retail nurseries; and, 5) display plants at the market place.
Generally, trays come in two types, shuttle trays and carrying trays, with each designed for entirely different purposes. FIG. 1 illustrates a side cross-sectional view of a shuttle tray 20 having multiple cavities 28 designed to accommodate the particular size flower pot indicated as pot 25. There are many different sized shuttle trays for different sized round flower pots, with the cavities 28 of each matching the size of the flower pot. Shuttle trays are designed to enable automatic filling of flower pots 25 with, e.g., soil, by special machinery, and soil is confined to the pots by virtue of the shuttle tray design which enables tops 26 of the pots 25 to be flush with the top surface 29 of the tray.
Carrying trays, such as the tray 30 shown in FIG. 2, are typically open with no interior divisions and are thus less conducive to automatic filling of soil, as soil tends to spill over during the filling process. These are primarily used for carrying and transporting pots short distances, e.g., at a retail store.
Another type of flower pot carrying or transporting device is a sheet of rings (not shown) designed to accommodate a certain size pot. The number of pots carried depends on the size of the container and tray and are usually formed by injection molding techniques to provide strength and longevity. There are some ring type carriers that allow multiple pots to be hung, e.g., for decorative and aesthetic purposes. These types are typically designed for carrying smaller pots, (typically 4" or less in diameter) and comprise a ring type carrier with a hanger attached.
As shown in FIG. 3(a), the shuttle trays 20 are designed to engage with attachable or affixed plastic strap handles 40 which trays may be used for transport at the plant nursery and which strap handles are typically used to encourage retail sales of multiple flower pots. As shown in FIG. 3(b), a simple engagement mechanism may be used to attach the handle 40 to the tray frame, such as, e.g., providing an opening 21 in an upper surface 29 at opposite ends of the tray 20, and inserting a tapered portion 45 that is shaped as an arrow and provided at each end of the plastic handle 40 into a respective opening in a manner so as the opening and the tapered portion of the handle are engaged. Of course, there exists other similar-type designs for attaching a handle to the shuttle or carrying tray. Usually, the types of "handled" trays as described shown herein are exclusively used for carrying smaller flower pots, i.e., below the size of "one gallon" size cans or pots. This is because these types of handled trays are not as structurally sound to accommodate larger flower pots and would be extremely awkward and heavy. Moreover, the carrying mechanisms used to transport and retail the smaller pots would not work in the transport of larger pots because trays and strap handles might break given present designs and material choices. To successfully transport, carry and/or retail multiple larger pots would require heavier, more rigid and ultimately costlier trays and handles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,184 describes a container handling apparatus that utilizes a plurality of fingers for lifting an arrangement of containers. The container handling apparatus described is complex as it utilizes a plurality of interconnected linkages for operating gripping fingers designed to grip an arrangement of small diameter containers.
It would thus be highly desirable to provide a plant flowerpot handle that facilitates the easy handling, lifting and transporting of several large open end containers, e.g., flower pots.
Additionally, it would be highly desirable to provide a plant flowerpot handle that will be able to easily handle and transport a multitude of one or two gallon container sized flower pots that are used each year for flowering annuals, perennials, tropicals, small trees and shrubs and other plants.